Rush: Being First-Term Senator Doesn’t Disqualify Cruz

Talk radio host Rush Limbaugh argued that Ted Cruz should not be disqualified from the presidency for being a first-term senator on Tuesday.

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After playing a clip of columnist Charles Krauthammer saying, “first-term senators, we already tried a first term senator, and that’s why when Scott Walker says a proven track record, what Walker has, he doesn’t have the fluency on issues that a Cruz does, and he’s made a lot of stumbles thus far. Cruz talks about you have to walk the walk rather than just talk the talk, you have to have done something, but that’s not his record in the Senate. He’s a good rhetorician, but when Walker says: ‘I ran the state. I took on the unions. I took on the liberals and I won.’ I think there’s gonna be a strong argument,” Limbaugh responded, “now, I have no argument with that. I have made it myself when it comes to Scott Walker. But really, is one of the knocks on Ted Cruz gonna be that he’s just like Obama? That he doesn’t have enough experience? Just like Obama, he’s only served a certain number of days in the Senate and he has not run a state, and he hasn’t really walked the walk and accomplished anything, just like Obama? So we — what is this? If Obama had run a state, or if Obama had been in the Senate longer, he’d have been okay? Obama would have been a better president if he had just been in the Senate longer, maybe been a governor? Is that all this is about? This is horse hockey, folks, that Barack Obama is what he is only because of a lack of experience? I don’t know how you come to that conclusion. Barack Obama is who he is because of his ideology.”

He added, “let’s talk about this experience for just a second. Here we have a two-year Senator, Barack Obama, he serves two years, 160 some-odd days. He’s a first-term Senator. He becomes president. Obama is running circles around the entire Congress, which is made up of what? All kinds of experienced politicians. Obama is embarrassing them. Obama’s making mincemeat of professional, career politicians with decades, in some cases, worth of experience.” And “you see, a conservative who leads, who is unafraid, unflappable, as Cruz is, and who is principled, who can relate, who can articulate, and who has a mission, can do a great deal as president, whether he was a governor, a senator, or whatever. ”

Rush also said that he has been “persuaded” by the argument that senators shouldn’t be president because of a lack of executive experience, but “it’s always dependent on who we’re talking about. People are individuals and no two are the same,” and warned against “broad-brushing” people.

Later he stated that while he couldn’t disagree that Walker has a record of accomplishments, since Cruz has been in the minority party in the Senate for the vast majority of the tenure, people should consider what Cruz has been able to block instead of what he has managed to pass.